Mentos from Israel with Chasam Sofer-Bnei Brak Hechsher.
We spoke with numerous Bnei Torah from Israel who all said they don't eat from this Hechsher, yet this candy is sold all over America.
Is this specific item better for some reason?
(Please let's not digress into a discussion regarding this Hechsher. I'm asking on behalf of people who wouldn't use it.)
I never called myself a Ben Torah, I have lived in the US for over 35 years, and I don't allow it in my house and do not buy it.
As for the product and the hechsher, those are obviously not manufactured in Israel, but were first marketed in Israel with that Hechsher, and it is being used for marketing to the Kosher market in the US (and presumably other countries too). One of my rules of thumb for a Hechsher that I'm not sure about is that if it is not from the country of manufacture or the country of distribution (where reliable certification exists in either of those), it is suspicious. As such, ever since CCS BB started certifying US produced products for US consumption, I became suspicious of the quality thereof.
In addition to the above, regardless of the quality of Hashgocho on domestic production, I have heard from people in the Kashrus field that often some organizations send mashgichim who are unable to communicate and understand English properly, let alone the local language in the country of production. Now think of what happened in Manalapan (and of the Poland cheese fiasco - which was a different Hechsher, but I am being told that CCS also sends mashgichim that cannot properly communicate and understand English or the local languages in countries of production) and tell me if you would like to trust such a hechsher on imported products.